"Nelhain is an ancient empire, but more importantly, a stronghold for mankind. The world has been coated in a terrible darkness. A darkness older than all life on earth, and deeper than the wild seas. Amidst the outbreaks of godly wrath and legions of corrupted souls, Nelhain somehow preserved for centuries.

Though civilization itself is falling victim to the Blind Curse, and few settlements exist outside shamans’ control anymore, we are still here. But the circle of ungodliness is prophesied to be fulfilled soon, and with that, our demise lurks. Another Deep Age lingers behind the cold suns. Another battle fought by the bravest, and most hopeless champions. Another cycle that will claim our sanity.

So then, shall we call upon the Divine? Such savagery shan’t be praised, but what choice does man have when facing these primordial terrors?"

Nelhain is a land clothed in darkness. Though no soul walking this world can know of other planes, all have heard of the tales of the world next to our own; The realm of the Deep. The Deep Ones slumber there, inside the God Cocoon, so they say. It is no challenge to find those who believe the ancient tales to be myths, as they’ve never laid eyes on these twisted creatures, nor have their fathers, or grandfathers, or great grandfathers. Millennia pass with nothing but human struggle to combat. But the milky shine that reflects of the shards floating in the sky seem inhuman nonetheless. And then, undeniably, there is a wretchedness in this world that consumes the land like a plague. And when the blind masses begin to rise, we fend them off under great cost. It is in these times that the people hope the Divine Savages are truth, and usurp the future molded by the Deep.

And so in these trying times, the Bellfire Covenant attempts to establish order in a ruthless empire. The feeble masses are drawn towards them, while others hide from their outposts, terrified of their champions. But the mantle of duty is to be picked up by any souls called upon, willingly or otherwise.

These lands… A battlefield for the God Cocoon’s prisoners. A graveyard founded by the Blind Curse… It is a harrowing world we live in. Perhaps it would be wise to succumb to the Deep.

So, I've been wanting to do a dark fantasy roleplay for a while now. Whereas I usually world-build extensively before booting up anything, I've decided to take a different approach this time. As you can see, this is very influenced by Dark Souls, which is often murky in its lore itself. In a world with elements of cosmic terror and a plethora of legends about the most shadowy individuals imaginable, we will shape this world. I have outlines of certain events I'd like to present our group with, and I've also established a certain level of lore, and some organizations of sorts, as well as some NPCs. Overall however, I'd like to let us build the empire of Nelhain (and potentially the world beyond it) together. For that reason, I've decided to let you come up with your own backgrounds. Create cities and monsters that have ravaged your native location, fashion ambitions of the most creative of magic, and feel free to ask me if anything isn't possible. I don't like to info-dump, so here's some very basic, stream-lined information to consider.

- Religion: Nelhain is largely free of religion. The belief in the Deep Ones is common, but few worship these beings, as they are a terrible malice to all life. A cult named The Witch's Womb exists, that believes in an old tale of a primordial mother that has once visited the vast land. The religious movement is a fringe group at best in today’s age, but once counted a large number of followers.

- The Deep: The Deep Ones are primordial beings that have ruled the world in intervals for over 2000 years. They disappear and reemerge without clear pattern, but the threat they present to life is massive, and so humanity has adopted to their presence by living in small colonies and cities where they belief protective magic is strong enough to repel the Deep Ones. In the wake of a Deep One’s appearance, the Old Curse spreads. Those affected by the Old Curse are consumed by it, and transform into the beasts known as the Viyore, named after an ancient entity, believed to precede even the Deep Ones). A plague to Nelhain, and humanity at large, the Viyore are the leftovers of the Deep Ones’ primordial origin, even in their absence. The process of turning is known as the Old Curse or the Blind Curse. Those that are transformed take a variety of appearances, but they’re all hideous, and ferocious in nature, and lose their humanity. Even those with weak symptoms are recognizable at first glance, as Vieyore lack eyes. They are covered in a layer of black sludge, however thin, and the substance often pools around their feet.

- The Law & Order: The Bellfire Covenant is the closest resemblance of authority in Nelhain. A large, stateless organization with a strict hierarchy of power. They are very critical of new recruits, and are generally seen as beneficial to life on Nelhain, but antagonistic nonetheless. It’s mission is to reestablish humanity and combat the curse. They are the creators of all Silver-Eyed Dragons that roam Nelhain. The Silver-Eyed Dragons are humans that have been magically engineered to combat the Viyore. They are feared and revered alike, and often lead small groups of Bellfire Soldiers. They, too, are recognizable easily by the liquid silver that whirls in their eyes.

- Important Fauna: The Elder Trees are gargantuan plants, with thick cores similar to beansprouts, and barren branches. As if their sheer size wasn’t enough, they are easily recognizable by the large object that sprouts in between the thicket of branches, closely resembling large eggs. It is said that angels are born from those eggs, if they ever hatch.

Keeping these core facts in mind, you are free to go wild. I'm trying to offer a somewhat blank canvas here for you to paint your character however you desire it, but I'd be happy to tweak and give feedback to any idea you might have and feel unsure is possible.

This is an application roleplay, so please submit your character sheets in here first. Here's the information I would like to have:

Name:Epiphet: (If applicable. Can be acquired later.)Age:Sex:Height:Weight:Race: (Feel free to invent something, you don't have to be human. I strongly suggest giving me a basic pitch of what you have in mind first, so you don't do a lot of work only to have me say "Nah, that doesn't work.)

Basic Description: (You can use a picture for your character (artwork only please), but give us a quick run-down of what you look like here. You may also be detailed here if you don't have a picture you want to use.)Region of Origin:

Personality: (I want development in the story, so don't feel pressured to supply your entire character's emotional reach. Just give us an idea what they're like.)

Background:

Powers: (Magic is a thing, but what kind of magic is up to you. Well, and me, 'cause I might say no depending on how powerful it is. Try and keep a clear concept, instead of muddling everything together.)

You can make your sheet as basic or as fancy as you want, just keep everything in order and hit me with them amazing characters.

This sounds very interesting, I've only a passing understanding of the Dark Souls lore, but this seems to draw a lot on the Lovecraftian Mythos which I know a bit more about if that would suffice.

Name: Amon PhothepEpithet: Grand Magister of NehekaraAge: 200 yearsSex: MaleHeight: 6ftWeight: 13 stoneRace: Tomb Liche - The ancient practices of Nehekara demand that mages and royalty be bound to their physical forms that they might serve the realm for eternity. As such mortal souls are often bound to their own decaying bodies that they might have a vessel in this world. Efforts are made to preserve the body by ensconcing it in enchanted armour and bandages allowing what is in effect a shambling corpse to act as though it were still a man of flesh and blood. Often mistaken for the Viyore, the Tomb Liches are anything but, fully possessed of their former intelligence they serve diligently as best as their undead form allows.

Amon is an ancient being, most of his flesh has long since decayed leaving little more than a skeleton beneath the tightly wrapped bandages that can be glimpsed underneath his armour. The armour itself also appears somewhat of an oddity, formed into the symbols of Nehekara. Hawks, skulls, serpents, and scorpions dot the armour. He also carries on his person a grave mask. The gold mask is a facsimile of his mortal visage, and he wears it when dealing with those who might be intimidated by his deathly visage.

Region of Origin: Nehekara is a windswept place, a desert barren even by the standards of the day. The people of Nehekara were a short lived people, the inhospitable nature of their environment meant that even the most brilliant of Nehekara's citizens died swiftly to the terrible environs in which they tried to survive. But they could not leave. Nehekara had one redeeming feature that kept its people struggling to survive the damnation of the desert.

Vorpal-Obsidian; stronger than steel, light as leather, and an excellent conduit for magic the people of Nehekara mined the resource and sought to harness it as a means to end their suffering.

The wizards of Nehekara began to fashion bodies from Vorpal Obsidian, shaped into the form of Nehekara's long forgotten gods. They then attempted to bind the souls of willing sacrifices to the bodies that they might provide the Nehekaran's with the hardiness necessary to survive the horrors of their home. The initial trials were horrific soul after soul was shattered, others were trapped in their new Obsidian bodies but were unable to move and others lost their minds in the process. But given time the wizards of Nehekara mastered the process and transferred the souls of their finest warriors into bodies fashioned from Vorpal Obsidian creating the first of the Ushabti. They lost much of their personality in the process, but their martial prowess and fierce loyalty remained intact making them the perfect warrior servants.

The wizards kept experimenting, wondering if the properties of Vorpal Obsidian could be used to preserve mortal flesh. The cycle of horrific but necessary experiments began anew. Many men and women were reduced to rotting malefic horrors before the process was perfected. Soon the expensive process of creating Tomb Liches was perfected, and made mandatory for all wizards and members of the royal house. Their minds were bound to their mortal forms for eternity that their powers and experience might be utilised by Nehekara for all eternity.

Powers: Like all Nehekaran wizards Amon is a master of death magic. Able to sap the life from those who oppose him; he is also able to manipulate the dead to serve his whims. He uses this latter power rarely however, for outside of Nehekara necromancy is frowned upon. As such he has made far more use of the Vorpal-Craft, the Nehkaran name for the practice of creating and commanding Ushabti constructs.

Amon is accompanied by a single Ushabti warrior. Sekmeht has served Amon faithfully, even before he became a Lich. The colossal warrior has saved him on more than one occasion and its ancient stone form is marred by numerous sword-strokes destined for its undead master.

@Karos No worries on the lack of Dark Souls knowledge. While it's heavily inspired by it, it draws on many things (such as Loftcraft, by proxy, I suppose) and I would prefer to create our own lore, really. So no worries on that end at all. :)

As for Amon, I very much enjoy how cohesive he feels. I only have two concerns, which I'd like to hear your thoughts on: If he is 200 years old, he would logically know much more than me about the lands, which is perhaps problematic on a purely practical level? Of course, Nehekara could be a far-away land so that he has not lived in Nelhain for too long, but then I'd like for you to have an idea as to why he finds himself in Nelhain these days.

@Sunbather That's good to hear, always nice to twist old cannon into something new.

Regarding Amon's age I can see two way to resolve the issue. Firstly, we can utilise the one you've already provided. He is new to the lands of Nelhain, or we could use his Lichedom to reduce his memory. Perhaps whilst the process preserves the knowledge the being possessed before death perfectly; it doesn't manage to preserve everything the being learns in undeath. So say every 100 years, Amon and the other Tomb-Liches would begin to forget old memories to make space for new ones, like a computer hard-drive overwriting old cache files but preserving core systems.

That way, he can retain all the basic things he'll need to survive (how to fight, speak, cast spells, etc) but won't have a perfect memory of everything that's happened since he died centuries ago.

As for why he's come to Nelhain, well he could be there searching for an item of magical power, seeking new lands free of the Viyore, etc. Perhaps once there's a few other CS up I could find a more fixed motivation. Right now I feel it best to leave it flexible if that's alright? Just so I can see what the other characters are motivated by, it might allow for a greater interplay between characters.

Hi. I saw this prompt while I was looking at what the site had to offer before joining and I really liked it. Is there limit to the number of characters we can submit? I have two competing idea and can't really settle on one yet. Ideally I'd just do both, but that might not be allowed.

One idea was a half-hulder, a type of fae creature. He'd be an axe man from the north.The second was going to be member of the Witch's Womb, but I don't know much about them.

Oh my yes. I'm absolutely interested. Have any objection to a Bloodborne-style cult dedicated to advancing humanity through infusions of the Deep One's blood? I will expand upon this idea if you're at all on board for it.

Hmmm...I will express my interest in this. I worry about the open world aspect of it though, will there be some plot or direction given or is it free for all? I've just noticed that free for all games tend to not last long. I am still interested though.

Also I am not up to date on Dark Souls logic, but I am leaning towards an assassin using some type of blood magic.

Basic Description: Blaise may lack an imposing stature or a fearsome mien, but she still carries herself with a sense of importance on the streets of Nelhain. She veils her wiry frame under the thick layers of her black and burgundy robe. Her a pale skin, a common feature in these lands, contrasts sharply with her flowing dark hair. The most striking things about Blaise are her eyes. Black as coal, they stare at the world with an unnatural intensity.

Region of Origin: Nelhain. The Wenyld family traces its origins back to the Churning Swamps in the southeast. A near endless variety of monuments and ruins butt against each other as something in the murky water slowly sucks them down into the darkness. They return eventually, but always broken and torn.

Personality: The desperation of the condemned is what drives Blaise into the dark places of the world. She has seen the fate that awaits her at death, the fate shared by every member of her bloodline. One day her soul will be consumed by an immortal beast. It will leave her with just enough consciousness to scream in agony for all time. Blaise has chosen to defy this fate and will do whatever it takes in order to escape or beat the curse.

Background: In ages past, High Queen Wenyld sat at the forefront of a budding empire. Gifted with the Sight she averted disasters and culled rivals. Nothing could touch her or her people. Nothing except the Deep Ones.

Wenyld saw their coming decades before their arrival, but saw no way to topple or repel these godlings. With desperation and age catching up, Wenyld decided that if she could not turn away these beasts, then she would become like them. A great multitude were slain in an effort to distill the exact essence of the Deep that she could then take into herself. The slurry of bodies tainted the land, spoiled it, and created the swamp as it is today.

Her obsession blinded her so that her son, Melmond, managed to build a plot against her. In her moment of triumph she was stuck down by Melmond and her other children. They could not kill her however. Her soul was already too infused with the seeping corruption of the Deep. She dragged them into the depths of the swamp water and cursed her living kin to one day join her in their damnation. The Curse of the Crown.

All this Blaise saw as she came of age. One day, upon her death, Wenyld would draw her spirit down to become another screaming ornament on her bloated soul. Against such a threat Blaise made the only choice. She would resist. Her first step was to join the Witch's Womb and learn their occult secrets. The next, and arguably harder one, is to find those others she has seen in her visions and challenge the creatures Wenyld so feared.

Powers: Blaise has a solid understanding of the magic used by the Witch's Womb, though her skill with such things could stand for some improvement. Her real skill actually lies in her arts as a seer. Her visions guide her path towards freedom and warn her of impending dangers. When the need arises she can also turn this power on her enemies, giving them a maddening, unfiltered, glimpse into what's to come.

Name: HrounEpiphet: the Younger, No-NoseAge: 43Sex: MaleHeight: 7' 5"Weight: 350 lbs.Race: Hulder (half)- Hulder are a race of spirit folk that haunt the shallow places between the Surface (the mortal world) and the Deep, passing from one world to another as they please. Hulder are mid-tier predators between humans an the things beyond. Hulder prey on and torture humans, but are just as easily preyed upon by the Deep Ones. In the Deep, hulder become abstract beings composed of the things that make up the substance of their souls. Fire, flesh, distended limbs, nails, almost anything really. As they approach the Surface they become more ensconced in reality, more human save for one or two grotesqueries that they retain no matter what. The only true way to know one faces a hulder is to strike them with iron; it poisons and burns them cause wounds that boil, fester, and pop.

Basic Description: Hroun's hulder name does suit him. There is no nose on his craggy gray face. It's almost enough to distract others from his massive size and the pupil-less whites of his eyes. He shaves his receding white hair, but it's hardly noticeable since he always has the cowl of his blue cloak pulled up. Beneath the cloak rests the chainmail of a warrior. The last thing to note about him is the iron-headed bardiche he carries, which seems small comparatively.

Region of Origin: Skejhal- Further north of Nelhain is a land of rolling pine forests and cold, dark days. No lords or empires rule here, just cloistered gatherings of men and women who seek solace in their isolation. They cut their homes and tools from wood and earth old enough to remember the last time the Deep Ones trod these lands.

Before long the humans think themselves safe and secure, but the hulder eventually find them. There are accidents, madness, and murder. Eventually the hulder swarm, smelling the blood in the air. The mortals flee and the forest reclaims the wood and stone. Evenetually the humans come back and the cycle repeats itself again.

Personality: Hroun is dour in the extreme. His face is so set in his grimace that most people mistake his craggy complexion for a mask. He rarely speaks, preferring his own council to that of others. Though it could seem like pride or stubbornness, Hroun simply trust himself more. Other people lie, cheat, and steal so often in this world that genuine empathy or interest seems like a bitter joke.

Background: Hulder have an old tradition called "bergtagning." They take a fancy to a mortal and steal them away to the shallows. Usually powerless against the hulder, these humans are forced to submit to the whims of their new masters. Hroun's father, Hroun the Elder, was one of these people. When the older Hroun returned home to the village of Heima her had lost a nose, but gained a child.

Hroun the Younger found no love or respite among his mortal kin. His father, traumatized from the abuses he'd suffered at the claws of Hroun's mother, took his frustrations out on his son. The village also found Hroun an easy target for their hatred of the hulder. Hroun, fortunately, grew fast and strong. It wasn't long before the people of Heima learned to hold their tongues in his presence.

At the age of eighteen Hroun left his kin and village behind. It was for the best. Heima soon fell to the predation of the cycle. Hroun worked his way into the pockets of the Bellfire Covenant as a mercenary. Though they certainly do not care for him or his life, at least they seem to respect his ability to carry out his contracts.

Powers: Hroun, thanks to his human side, can wield and wear iron without having to worry about scalding himself. His hulder half also makes it easier for him to pass from the Surface to the Deep through the shallows.

Hey everyone. First of all, I'd like to say thank you for the interest. I'm glad this found some people who thought it was enticing. I received quite a few of questions about the world, and the setting, and such things. I ended up realizing that this isn't as thought out as I believe it needs to be. While I definitely intend to keep the collaborative world-building dynamic in the final product, I think I need to strengthen the framework, so that players will have an accessible and consistent playingfield.

@FantasyChic You're right, they tend to die quickly. I will definitely use a narrative-heavy approach once I finalized it.

For now, I apologize for the sort-of-kind-of cancelling right now, especially to those who have already put work into sheets. If you are not too angry at me, I'd like to offer a sort of pre-access thingy once it's up and running, so that you are notified and can decide if you're still interested when I reopen it.